Abrading apparatus



June 6, 1939- B. TUCHMANN ET AL `2,151,112

ABRADING APPARATUS Filed April 7, 1938 Patented June 6, 1939 uNiTED STATES ABRADING APPARATUS Louis B. Tuchmann and Sidney Joe Tuchmann,

Norfolk, Va.

rApplication \April 7, 1938, Serial No. 200,735

`5 Claims. This invention relates to abrading apparatus i and more particularly to a holder for a sheet of or less regular finished cleaned surface is desired',-

it has been lfound to 'be expedient to `make use of some holder for the abrasive material when the same is applied to the surface to becleaned. In addition, it has also occurred to those engaged in the cleaning of surfaces of abrasive mate- 20 rials that more satisfactory results may be obltained when a holder for the abrasive material is utilized that more or less approximates the' surface contours of the surface to be cleaned. That is, when the surface to lbe cleaned is a plane, al

block of wood in the shape of rectangular parallelepiped about which the abrasive sheet material is wrapped has frequently been made use of. Y While these methods have been more satisfactory than the one which merely involved the 30 application of the sheet of abrasive material directly to the surface to be cleaned merely through Y the' agency of the hand of the operator or workman, and while the results obtained are slightly improved, this latter method involves considerable time and labor in its application and it has remained for applicant to provide a simple holding device for a sheet of abrasive material which, as will later be described in more detail, rapidly and eectively effects the cleaning of surfaces 49 with a minimum vof effort.

It is well known that if a good solder joint is to be had,the surfaces ofthe members to be `joined by soldering must first be cleaned before the flux and-solder is applied and the above mentioned methods of cleaning have been used in connection with the preparatory work in the art of soldering joints. Other problems have presented themselves when the surfaces to be cleaned prior to soldering are internal, asin pipe fittings, 50 such as copper pipe fittings, which are used in large quantities today in various plumbing, air

conditioning, and other hydraulic installations.4

One prior method of cleaning .such interior surfaces involves the wrapping of sheet abrasive ma- It has been terial about a finger of the operator which is (ci. 51-1941 i q then inserted and oscillated within a fitting open-- ing to effect cleaning of the interior surface- The objections to this method are obvious in that they are wasteful of time, the resultsfare nonuniform, and it is ineffective where the orifice if the fitting is relatively small. j f

It. is an object of the invention to provide a simple holder adapted to receive and holda sheet of abrasive material. 1 It is a further object of the invention to pro'- vide a holder of simple and rugged construction adapted toreceive a sheet of abrasive material from an operator, with a minimum ofieiort on the part of the opera-tor, and hold it inproper abrading position.

Other objects and the nature and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Referring to the drawing a gear I0 is mounted on a work bench I I through the medium of C clamp mechanism I2 formedlintegralrwith -gear box I0. Within the gear box =I0 a small gear I3 and a meshing large gear I4` are operatively associated with each otherlin'a manner such that when crank handle I5 isr rotated by hand at a given speed the shaft I .which may be formed integral with gear I 3` is rotated at a much greater speed. The exposdend lportion I1 of the shaft I6, externally f th'e gear box III, may be `generally square in ;'1i 1'ssl vsection to cooperate with the generally square opening I l formed throughout the 1engthof' .the cylinder I9, which comprises the body portion of the preferred form of holder, Vsee Fig'.' j2.1 A groove 2!) may be formed in the surface ofthe cylinder I9, parallel to its axis in a mannaro 'jreceive and securely hold the bent end section!! kof the spiral leaf spring 22. It is to be noted that 'the' only portion of the spring 22 which-is secured -to the body portion I9 yis that end portil 2I `}which is received Within the longitudinal "slot 2li. 'Ihe` Fig. 1v is a. view partly in elevation and partly method or means for securlngthe. nd portion 2| to the body I9 may depend upOI'ftlDharacter of the material utilized. For exampleif they both be steel this junction may be effected by welding or by other suitable means for joining ferrous metals. When the body pprtion I9 is a plastic, such asa phenol resin, cellulose acetate, phenoleformaldehyde, pyroxylin, urea-formaldehyde, or even hard rubber, the body portion may be cast or molded into place about the end por- Vtion 2| and simultaneously effect a secure junction therebetween.

In applying a sheet of abrasive material 23 to the holder, a. sheet should be selected which is of a width corresponding to the width of the holder I9 or it maybe cut from a larger sheet to such width. The length of the abrasive material should correspond to approximately the circumference of the cylinder I9 and perhaps a trifle longer. One end of the sheet abrasive material selected is bent back on itself to form a hood portion 24, see Fig. 4, which may then be slipped over the free end portion 25 of the spring 22 and the remainder of the sheet abrasive material Wrapped about the outside of the leaf spring 22 and held in position by the thumb and foreflnger of the operator until it is inserted within an internal surface to be cleaned, as illustrated by way of example in Fig. 1, by T fitting 26. By wrapping the sheet abrasive material relatively tightly about the leaf spring 22, the spring is compressed toward the surface of the body portion I9 and the whole assembly will then be of such a size as to facilitate the insertion of the holder and abrasive material within the opening 21 of. the T tting26, the interior surface of which is to be cleaned preparatory to a soldering operation. The'T fitting 26 may have formed therein solder grooves 28 and solder openings 29 to permit the entry of solder into the grooves 28.

With the T fitting grasped firmly in one hand of the operator the holder I9 and abrading material inserted within the opening 21 of the fitting, the temporary assembly is then associated with the end portion I1 of the shaft I6 as illustrated in Fig. 1 and the crank handle l5 rotated by the operator with his other hand for several seconds to effect the proper cleaning of the interior surface of the opening 21 within the T fitting 26. It will bel understood that when the tightly wrapped holder I9 and spring 22 is inserted in the proper position within the opening 21 and released, the spring 22 will then expand and adjust itself to effect the proper bearing relationship with the surface of the opening 21 whereby the abrading materiall will uniformly and definitely effect the cleaning of said surface.

A modified form of holder, illustrated in Fig. 3, may comprise a cylindrical body portion 30' about which is mounted leaf. spring 3|, one end of which 32 is formed to a s'quare section tube and the other end 33 free corresponding to the end portion 25 of the preferred form of holder illustrated in Fig. 2. The cylindrical portion 30 may be fabricated of the same material and in the same manner as cylinder I9 and may be secured to the leaf spring 3| in the manner described in connection with the preferred form.

v The method of applyingv the sheet abrasive material to the modified form illustrated in Fig. 3 is of course precisely the same as that already described4 in connection with preferred form and illustrated in Fig. 4.

Not only can the body portions I9 and 30 of the holders described be made of steel and plastics as already mentioned but they can be made of alloys of lead, tin and zinc or even of cast iron.

Not only can the holder be fabricated in accordance with the illustration in Figs. 2 and 3, but it is conceivable that the holder, including the body portion and the spiral shaped member, might be made of a single piece, either by molding or in any other suitable way, thereby eliminating the necessity for a junction as is required in those forms of my invention illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.

It will be understood of course that when fittings of different sizes are to be cleaned, that abrasive material holders of different corresponding sizes are to be utilized. It has been found in practice that when an 1 inch fitting is to be cleaned, that an effective size of cylindrical body portion is -rl inch in diameter, when a 3A inch fitting is to be cleaned an effective size body portion is' inch in diameter, and when an Mg inch fitting is to be cleaned, 1K2 inch diameter for the body portirn is effective;

In practice it has been found that the instant invention has made for a great saving of time. By actual count it has been estimated that there are on the average, twenty-two fittings to each bathroom installation and each of these fittings has at least two or three ends to be cleaned prior to soldering. It has further been estimated that approximately two or three minutes, per joint cleaned, elapses when the cleaning operation must be performed by hand. In contrast to this, the time required when the cleaning operation is performed with the aid of the instant invention, isl approximately 15 to 30 seconds, making for a saving of about one and three-quarters to two and three-quarters minutes per joint cleaned. As there are a minimum of two joints per fitting, approximately three and one-half to five and one-half minutes are saved on the installation of each fitting. Multiplying this saving by 22, the average amount of fittings per bathroom, it will be seen that one and one-half to two hours of labor are saved whenthe instant invention is applied to a job. To further illustrate thc saving effected by the utilization of the invention, it may be said that about ten fittings may be cleaned with the aid of the device in the same time that one may be cleaned by hand.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in this device without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore the invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawing and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claims.

We claim:

l. In an apparatus for use in the cleaning of inner surfaces of metal pipe fittings, a body portion generally circular in cross section, a generally spiral shaped leaf spring member generally encircling said body portion and secured thereto at one of its ends, the other end of said spring member being free, said spring member being spaced from said body portion along its length except at that end which is secured thereto, a sheet of abrasive material comprising a sheet'body portion and an end portion, said end portion including a section folded back parallel to the sheet body portion, said end portion engaging the free end of said spring member and said sheet body portion overlying at least a portion of the exterior surface of said spring member. r

2. A device for use in cleaning inner surfaces of metal fittings comprising a cylindrical body portion, a generally spiral shaped leaf spring generally encircling said body portion and secured thereto at one of its ends to said body portion, the other end of said spring being free, a sheet of abrasive material comprising a sheet body portion and an end portion, said end portion including a section folded back parallel to the sheet body portion, said end portion engaging the free end of said spring member and said sheet body portion overlying at least a portion of the exterior surface of said spring member, the axis of said generally spiral shaped leaf spring generally corresponding to the axis of said cylindrical body portion.

3. 'Ihe structure recited inclaim 2, said body portion being fabricated of a plastic material.

4. In an apparatus for cleaning exterior wall surfaces of metal fittings, a generally cylindrical body portion, said body portion being formed with a passage therethrough of non-circular section, a generally spiral shaped leaf spring member generally encircling said body portion and secured to said body portion at one of its ends along a line parallel to the axisof said body portion, said spring member being free at its other end, a sheet of abrasive material comprising a sheet body portion and an end portion, said end portion including a section folded back parallel to the sheet body portion, said end portion engaging the free end of said spring member and said sheet body portion overlying at least a portion of theexteror surface of said spring member, the axis of said springv member generally corresponding to the axis of said body portion.

5. In 'an apparatus for usein the cleaning of metal pipe fittings, a generally cylindrical body portion and a leaf spring member, said leaf spring member generally encircling said body portion and comprising a bent portion, said cylindrical portion being secured to the bent portion of the spring member, one end of said leaf spring member being free, a sheet of abrasive material comprising a sheet body portion and an end portion, said end portion including a section folded back parallel to the sheet body portion, said end portion engaging the free end of said spring member and said sheet body portion overlying at least a portion of the exterior surface of said spring member, the axis of the generally spiral shaped portion corresponding to the axis of the body portion.

LOUIS B. TUCHMANN. SIDNEY JOE TUCHMANN. 

